Flying Solo
by kirbyviper93
Summary: <html><head></head>Faced with the disbandment of the Star Fox team, Falco Lombardi is the only member who is unsure of the direction his life will take. Rated T for mild swearing and alcohol consumption. Semi-AU, a couple OCs.</html>
1. Retirement

_This is my first story posted on this website, and my first attempt at a Star Fox fan fiction. Don't go easy on me for it. This story takes place from Falco's perspective, and starts shortly after the events of Star Fox: Assault. I will be ignoring the events of Command for two major reasons. First of all, I haven't actually played Command, and thus don't feel comfortable or qualified to use anything from it. Second, there are too damn many endings for all of it to be considered canon._

_A quick note on characterization: Because this story is semi-AU, I reserve the right to make subtle changes in the Star Fox team's personality. Because the story is all about how how they carry on after the team splits up, it stands to reason that the team as we know it would change as people (animals, whatever). Any complaints regarding anyone acting "out of character" will be ignored and/or laughed at, and the offenders shot._

_I don't own Star Fox or any of the characters, locations, or scenarios from the series (besides my own creations). All rights regarding them belong to Nintendo._

_Enjoy._

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><p><strong>Flying Solo<strong>

_Part 1 – Departure_

Chapter 1 - Retirement

Falco Lombardi could hardly believe the words on the screen in front of him, though this was at least the seventh time he had read them. Peppy Hare, the Star Fox team's senior member, was finally retiring from their crew of mercenaries. _I guess the old rabbit finally decided he was too old to keep at this business, especially after the Aparoid invasion._

Approximately six weeks prior, the Lylat System had faced invasion from a previously unknown alien species known as the Aparoids. These aliens had the unnerving ability to assimilate most forms of life and technology and make them bend to the Aparoids' will. Star Fox barely managed to extinguish the threat by injecting their queen with a self-destruct program made from their DNA by Beltino Toad, Slippy's father and lead scientist for the Cornerian Fleet. In the long struggle, many lives had been lost, and several others had come close to their end, Peppy's included. Going into the final battle, the team believed their eldest teammate to be dead, as he had put their flagship the Great Fox and his own body at risk to give them a chance to attack the queen. Upon escaping from the Aparoid home world after the queen's defeat, they discovered that Peppy had jettisoned to safety at the last minute using an escape pod. He had hardly emerged unscathed, however, and due to his injuries, he promised (they had assumed in jest) that he was "really gonna retire after this."

And, at the tail end of the team's vacation period, it seemed that the hare intended to make good on his promise after all. Falco had opened a single email on the computer screen in front of him, sent from Peppy Hare to the rest of the Star Fox team: Fox McCloud, the leader and retroactive namesake of the group; Krystal, a telepath and Fox's love interest; Slippy Toad, a mediocre pilot but an excellent mechanic; and Falco Lombardi himself, the team's ace pilot. Peppy's letter was succinct, leaving its intended recipients with no doubts as to the writer's intentions:

_My friends, after many long years serving with the Star Fox team, both as a pilot and a makeshift commander, I have decided that I am retiring from spaceflight for good. Simply put, I am getting too old for this, and my skills and reflexes aren't what they used to be. I have no doubt that the four of you and ROB can get along just fine without me, and I wish you nothing but the best of luck. General Pepper is hosting a retirement party for me on the 14__th__ at 1900 hours in Corneria City's Academy Hall. Here's hoping I see you all there.  
>Again, best wishes,<br>Peppy Hare_

Falco leaned back in his chair, still trying to process the information. His usually arrogant demeanor had given way to genuine astonishment at his senior member's decision. _Star Fox without Peppy… As much flak as I give the old man for being as old as he is, he's always been way helpful to the team. I'm not sure how well we'll function without him there to give us advice._

A tinny _DING_ sound came from the monitor. An instant message. Falco checked the name: _Fox McCloud._ He opened the window to read Fox's message.

_Can you believe Peppy's retiring?_

Falco chuckled, glad that he wasn't the only one feeling a bit incredulous at the news. _Nah,_ he typed, _I didn't think the old bunny could resist the thrill of the fight, even at a distance._

Fox's response came quickly. _You gonna show at the official retirement party? I know how you never liked to mingle with the brass…_

Falco considered the question. While the Cornerian Army's parties were not exactly Falco's cup of tea, he figured he ought to show Peppy Hare the proper respect. _Eh, what the hell. Might as well show._

_Oh good. Slippy and I were hoping not to have to abduct you._

_Ha ha. Very funny._

_You and I both know how dry these things can be, Falco, but it means a lot to Peppy that we're there for it._

_Yeah, yeah. I say we give the old hare a proper send-off after the official bit, though, just the team._

_Is this a sincere, selfless offer coming from Falco Lombardi? I may die of shock._

_Zip it, McCloud._

_In all seriousness, though, where's the altruism coming from? This really isn't like you._

Falco hesitated for a minute. He rarely liked to reveal his considerate side, but… Fox was his best and closest friend. He settled for a happy medium between that and his usual carefree self.

_I dunno… I just figure Peppy's helped us a crapton over the years, why not return the favor?_

_Makes sense to me._

There was a slight lull in which neither Fox nor Falco sent a message. Falco finally broke the textual silence after several minutes.

_Still, gonna be pretty weird without Peppy along, huh? Be weird to see how the team will carry on without him._

_I actually wanted to talk to you about that… _

_Yeah? What's up?_

_I was thinking about possibly leaving the team myself to pursue… other interests._

_Serious? Like, what kind of other interests? _As far as Falco was aware, Fox's only real time commitment had ever been the team…

_Romantic interests, mainly._

Falco mentally slapped himself for not realizing sooner. Fox and Krystal had hardly been able to keep away from each other since he had saved her life on Planet Sauria. Falco himself had just rejoined the team after a years-long hiatus during which he had done some freelance work around the galaxy. That was the first time that Falco and Krystal met. The two of them were on friendly enough terms, but nobody knew her better than Fox. Rumor had it the two had actually been dating ever since he saved her life, though when asked, Fox would deny it with a stutter and Krystal would only giggle.

_Right. You thinkin' about poppin' the question?_

_I've already got a ring picked out and everything. And if she says yes, I'd like you to be my best man._

Falco was taken aback. He had asked the question half jokingly, not expecting such a serious answer.

…_Well?_

Falco had sat stunned for a full two minutes; he had barely realized that he hadn't responded. _Yeah, of course, man. I'd be honored._

_Thanks a bunch, Falco! Good to know you're on board with this. Just don't tell anyone else about it yet, huh? I want you guys to be there for the proposal._

_No prob. Maybe at the after party? We'll figure somethin' out later._

_Sure thing. Thanks again, Falco._ With that, Fox logged off.

The falcon swiveled around in his chair, idly studying his apartment, which itself was far too upscale for the sparse amount of time Falco actually spent there. On the coffee table in front of the couch was a back issue of _Falcon's Health_ as well as a balance toy modeled after an Arwing, the Star Fox team's signature individual spacecrafts. The desk itself was home to not only Falco's personal computer, but also several music CDs, a couple advanced flight maneuver booklets, and a small notepad with a few personal reminders written upon it (Falco picked up a pen and quickly scrawled "Peppy Retirement Party – 14th 1900, after party here" and "Fox proposal"). The rest of the apartment had all of the common furnishings of any other residence: a queen-sized bed and full-length mirror in the bedroom, a sectional couch (which Falco slept on more often than the bed itself), the desk, coffee table, television, and various kitchen appliances, most of which was seeing much more use than usual.

Falco walked into the kitchen to grab a soda from his refrigerator. _Note to self:_ _buy some booze for the party, _Falco thought as he closed the door. As he popped the tab on the small aluminum can, he leaned back against the counter, allowing his thoughts to take over. First Peppy, then Fox and Krystal… At this rate, the Star Fox team would soon completely disband.

What would that mean for him? Everyone else had some sense of direction. Peppy would enjoy the rest of his years in retirement, Fox and Krystal would make a life for themselves somewhere, and Slippy could make a killing as a mechanic on any planet he chose. This team was the only sense of organization Falco ever really had in his life, and as a pilot, it was really all he was qualified for. He could always enlist in the Cornerian Fleet… But that lifestyle had never appealed to him. He had a certain disdain for authority that made taking orders near impossible for him. Even if they were to offer him a position as an officer, Falco lacked the level of discipline required for the military. _I suppose I could try to form my own team…_ That hardly appealed to him either. Even though he didn't like taking orders, he didn't like the prospect of giving them any better. Besides that, that would mean searching for other team members, and he wasn't sure how to judge potential recruits, or for that matter, where to _find_ potential recruits.

He took a long swig of the cola in his hand. _Why am I thinking about this now? I've still got some time before I really have to worry. For now, I should just be happy for my teammates. I should actually get to work on planning for the upcoming week. The 14__th__ is in four days._ He stood up straight and started back to his desk, turning to the fridge for a split second. A lone photograph held by a magnet to the door caught his eye, and he stopped mid-step. The photograph depicted the Star Fox team as of a few months ago, not in any sort of military poses, but as a casual group picture. Falco removed the photo from the door to examine it more closely. Fox was front and center, an ear-to-ear grin clearly visible on his face. Falco was slouching at Fox's right side, one arm around his shoulders in a brotherly manner, while Krystal stood at Fox's left with her arm around his waist. Peppy stood on Falco's other side, his wizened face bearing a small, gratified smile. Slippy was practically bouncing on Krystal's left (even in the picture, it was easy to see how energetic he was), his trademark goofy grin plastered across his face. Surely a ragtag band of misfits, but all of them were so obviously at ease with each other, they could be mistaken for a family.

A smile formed itself on Falco's lips against his will at this thought. He would never say it out loud, but Falco had always considered the Star Fox gang to be his family. Not that anyone would have needed to ask him; it was evident in the way that he acted around them in everyday moments as well as how he worked with them in combat. As the ace pilot, he felt a vague sense of responsibility to his teammates to help them through any mission. Of course, he masked his true feelings by complaining whenever they needed his help. He was sure that Fox, if no one else, knew the truth; after all, he had asked Falco to be his best man.

Falco felt a twinge of sadness again as he realized that his family would be going their separate ways soon. He replaced the picture on the door of the refrigerator, then headed back to his desk to send out invitations for Peppy's after party. _I don't know how much longer I have with these guys. Better make the most of it._

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><p><em>Reviews are awesome. People who review are awesome. If you took the time to read this, please do us both a favor and be awesome.<em>  
><em>You can also read this fan fiction on NintendoLand, which I will update a day or two ahead of this.<em>


	2. Decoration

_Apologies for the long delay in getting this chapter up; between a hard drive crash, a trip to China, and moving into a new apartment, I just haven't had much time for writing this summer. But the new chapter's up, and hopefully it won't be another four months before I get the next one finished and uploaded. Enough of my excuses; that's not what you came here to read._

_The disclaimer at the start of the first chapter still stands: I don't own the rights to Star Fox or any of the characters, locations, or scenarios from the series, save for my own creations. All rights regarding them belong to Nintendo.  
><em>

_Enjoy._

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><p><em>Part 1 – Departure<em>

Chapter 2 – Decoration

Over the next four days, Falco did little else besides preparing for Peppy's after-party, as well as the proposal his best friend had planned for said party. Not that he had much else to do; the team's vacation had left a gaping hole in his social calendar, much to his admirers' surprise. Fans of the Star Fox team generally regarded Falco as the cool one (which was true, as far as Falco was concerned) and thus assumed he was also incredibly popular and spent all of his spare time at high-class bars and clubs. In the old days, this was true— Falco still had VIP access to any club in the city should he choose to use it— but that lifestyle hardly appealed to him anymore. He wasn't as young as he used to be, the party scene was no longer his. Of course, he still turned up at the occasional rager whenever he had time away from missions, but by and large Falco preferred the quieter environment of his own apartment, or else that of his favorite underground bar, The Meteor Field.

Falco did learn one thing from his past of crazy parties, however, and that was how big of a role music played in a party scenario. Different clubs played different styles at different times to set different moods— the key was knowing which was appropriate at what time. Falco intended to make the greatest playlist possible for his old friend's retirement party; he wanted to send the old rabbit off with a bang. He sat at his desk, skimming through the music saved on his computer.

Silently, Falco ruled out several genres of music for the purposes of this party. _Let's see here… Hip-hop and electronic stuff is out. That's all meant for big parties, get the blood flowin', build up some energy. Besides, the old bastard doesn't care for that kinda music anyway._ That was another trick Falco had learned from some of his favorite DJs: always play to your audience's preference. What good was a killer techno track when the crowd wanted to bump and grind to some hip-hop? _Metal and country are out for the most part, too; some of that shit's impossible to party to. I know Fox likes poppy stuff and Slippy's into some weird alternative, but I dunno WHAT the hell Krystal listens to..._ Falco eventually decided on a mix of alternative and pop rock, with some relatively harmless dance music thrown in as well as a few old classics.

Some of the more seasoned DJs Falco had met in his days as a scenester had told him how important it was to include specific songs for special occasions. It was one thing to play some loud and fast music at a club to keep the atmosphere high-energy, but it was quite another to play a song that was meaningful to the people listening at, say, a wedding reception. For as long as Falco could remember, Peppy's favorite song was "End of Days" by The Katina Outcasts, an oldie that told the story of a pilot nearing the end of his life after a battle. With Peppy's looming retirement, the chorus seemed especially poignant:

_So I raise my glass to you, my friends, in hopes that you stay well  
>May Andross never find that you've avoided his sweet Hell<br>I've done my duty, run my course, and now my ship's run out of force  
>But of course we knew it had to end this way<br>Now it's time for me to face the end of days..._

The azure-feathered falcon felt a rush of emotion at the song's chorus in spite of himself. Peppy had probably subjected the team to that song a million times over the years, and they had all become so sick of hearing it that they became frustrated at the mere mention of it. And yet it had stirred emotion in Falco. He, who was the most able to keep such feelings under wraps, had been moved by song that the entire team claimed for a while was the bane of their existence. _Seems like I'll even miss the annoying parts of the guy. _Falco shook himself, a reminder for him to get back to work on his planning. He needed a song for his soon-to-be engaged vulpine buddies.

Almost immediately after he had started planning the after-party, Falco had opened the invitation to a couple close friends of the team; namely Bill Grey, a friend of Fox's from their Academy days, and Katt Monroe, an old teammate of Falco's. Both were enthralled to have the opportunity to celebrate the old hare's retirement with the rest of the team.

Falco himself was a bit wary of their inclusion... well, Katt's inclusion, if he was completely honest with himself. The two of them had flown together in a gang called the Hot Rodders in Falco's days before he had joined the Star Fox team. Although the two had been teammates for quite some time, it was never quite clear to anyone what more there was (if there was indeed anything more) between them. A mutual attraction was obviously present, but for whatever reason neither had ever acted on it, hence the confusion. During the Lylat Wars, Katt assisted the Star Fox team on three occasions: once on Zoness, a tropical paradise that had been consumed by pollution during the war, another time in Sector Z, where she had helped to fend off an attack on the Great Fox, and again on Macbeth, where they had destroyed one of the Venomian Army's largest supply depots. Every time their paths crossed, Katt flirted openly with Falco, who became more than a little flustered at her advances, if they could be called that.

As Falco skimmed a list of songs that he thought accurately depicted Fox and Krystal's relationship, he was also surreptitiously trying to pick out songs that might describe his relationship with Katt. Both tasks were proving to be quite difficult. Fox and Krystal had kept their relationship very private, so it was challenging to get a bead on how they interacted when they were alone. Finding a song that described what Falco and Katt had together was nigh-impossible considering that not even the two of them knew what that was. He added a couple generic soft-rock love songs, but that didn't satisfy him. At a loss for what song to add for Fox and Krystal, he opened up a blank e-mail and addressed it to Fox with the subject line "Your song." In the message field, he typed up a short request.

_nearly done with the playlist for the after-party. just need a song for you and Krystal. anything special come to mind?  
>-Falco<em>

The response came almost immediately, something Falco had not expected. He opened the message, which was equally short.

_Was just about to e-mail you about that. Haha If you could play "Why Go Alone" by Fortuna, that'd be awesome. Now get to bed, Peppy's parties happen tomorrow.  
>-Fox<em>

Falco smiled at the song choice, wondering why he hadn't thought of it earlier, and added it to the back end of the playlist. The last sentence of Fox's e-mail took him aback slightly— it couldn't have been that late, could it?— until he looked at the clock in the lower-right corner of his computer monitor. It was nearly 3 o'clock in the morning. He had lost track of time arranging the playlist for the after-party. _I better get some sleep,_ he thought. _Gotta be well-rested for the official party tomorrow._ He saved the playlist one last time to make sure it wouldn't be lost by mistake, then shut off his computer and headed to bed.

A few minutes before 5 o'clock the next evening, Falco stepped out of a taxi in front of Academy Hall dressed in his sharpest flight uniform, the light tan color of his clothing in sharp contrast to the many sky-blue uniforms of the Cornerian Army. As the Star Fox team was technically a mercenary group, although they had fought for General Pepper more than once, they were not part of the Cornerian Army and thus were in charge of their own uniforms. Considering that they were independently operated, dress codes for the team were not usually stringent (more than once, Slippy had come to team conferences in silly outfits, just to test the boundaries), but Fox had ordered Class A uniforms for their senior member's retirement party, an order that Falco had begrudgingly obeyed.

He tugged at the knot on his necktie, a metaphorical chain by which he was bound. He liked to look sharp at all times, but he could never stand suits, feeling that they looked too uptight. _Can't wait to get back to my place, outta this monkey suit, and into some khakis or something. This uniform makes me look stuffy, which totally blows. Still, gotta look presentable for Pep._ He sighed in frustration and walked through the large front doors of the building.

Corneria City's Academy Hall was mostly comprised of a single enormous banquet hall, resembled a convention center, and was often rented out to public schools, organizations, and even private parties for their own personal use. As it was a part of the Cornerian Flight Academy, however, military occasions such as this always took precedence over public events; in fact, General Pepper had had a personal appointment made by the Senior Vice President of the largest construction firm on the planet canceled to make way for this ceremony. This Senior VP and the General had something of a rivalry going, as General Pepper would often set up a military event in order to give the man's parties the boot, simply because his sense of self-importance was so overblown that he felt his time and money was worth more than the military's... not to mention that the old hound thought it was hilarious. The first time this happened, the Senior VP had tried to appeal to his CEO, a former engineer that had served in the Cornerian Defense Fleet, who simply laughed in his face and told him that he wouldn't dream of messing with General Pepper and that he should "solve his own damn problems."

As Falco entered the banquet hall, he was overcome by a wave of sky-blue uniforms. It looked as though General Pepper had invited the entire army to celebrate Peppy's retirement. There were three long tables that stretched the length of the Hall as well as one shorter table that spanned the width of it at which the most high-ranking officers were seated. As he approached the far end of the hall, Falco could see General Pepper sitting at the center of the table, resplendent in his trademark red uniform, an impassive look on his face. Next to him was the guest of honor, Peppy Hare himself, who also looked rather stoic. Falco was unsurprised to see General Pepper looking this way, as it was his default expression, but seeing such stoicism from Peppy outside of a major battle was a bit unnerving. Usually he was more open and grandfatherly; Falco supposed that he had their present company to thank for the change in Peppy's composure. In between the brass' table and the soldiers' tables was a podium with a single microphone. Obviously there were a few speeches planned for this evening, which he assumed would be very dry and unpleasant. He blanched in anticipation, or lack thereof.

Though Falco's and the rest of the team's uniforms stood out from the rest in color, it was still very difficult for him to find the others in the vast crowd of soldiers. Wading through the sea of mostly native Cornerian bulldogs, Falco eventually found his teammates deep in conversation at the front end of the center table. Fox sat in the seat on the left side closest to the podium, his uniform almost perfectly matching his light-brown fur. Seated across from him was Krystal, whose electric-blue fur made her nearly invisible amongst the Cornerian Army uniforms. Slippy sat on Krystal's left, having traded his usual red ball cap for the tan cover that went with his uniform. The seat next to Fox was empty. Apparently they had reserved it for him.

Fox was the first to notice his arrival. "There you are!" he said, standing to face his team's ace pilot. "We were almost starting to think that you wouldn't show."

Falco chuckled cynically. "What? After all these years, you still don't trust me when I say I'll do somethin'?"

Slippy snorted and rolled his eyes. Falco shot him a look that said plainly, _Shut the hell up, you._

Fox put his arm around Falco's shoulder, pulling him into a half-hug. "We hate these things as much as you do. There's a reason we're not formally a part of the Cornerian Army, y'know."

"Yeah, yeah," Falco replied, playfully shrugging off Fox's arm. The two of them took their places at the table. "When's this thing supposed to start, anyway?"

"Should be any minute now, I think," Krystal said, her British accent quite pronounced. She looked up at the brass' table where the General and Peppy were talking to each other.

Beside her, Slippy fidgeted in his seat. "I hope they get this over with quickly," he moaned petulantly. "I wanna get out of here so I can eat something."

"Be patient, Slippy," Krystal responded. "Peppy's earned his recognition, and you can wait to eat until it's been paid to him."

Slippy grimaced. Being the youngest in the group, the toad had the least patience for this sort of thing. Fox said nothing, but he could tell that he sympathized with Slippy's position. As Krystal was a telepath, his silence didn't amount to much; Falco knew that Krystal could most likely hear what Fox was thinking, but she didn't seem to respond.

Falco recalled a conversation the team had had several months previously on the subject. Krystal couldn't hear everything that everyone was thinking at all times— that would simply get too confusing, and she'd likely go insane before too long. She could, however, hear the thoughts of those she was closest to, both emotionally and distance-wise. Sometimes distance made no difference; if the emotion behind a thought was strong enough, it would come through to Krystal very clearly. Sometimes the emotion behind a thought wasn't necessary; in large crowds such as this one, Krystal had to concentrate to prevent herself from hearing every thought. Her lack of a reaction seemed to indicate that she was trying her hardest not to listen to the hundreds of thoughts bouncing around the heads of everyone in the banquet hall. Fox's thoughts, however close he was to Krystal, were safe for now.

Fox's friend Bill Grey, an officer in the Cornerian Army and the leader of the Husky and Bulldog squadrons, sat at the head of the table next to them with his back to Fox. He leaned across the aisle to talk to them more clearly. "I'm with Slippy. I've been in this army too long not to know how long-winded these things can get."

Falco groaned internally. The longer the speeches took, the longer he would have to deal with the higher-ups. He had just turned to respond when Fox chimed in. "Let's just get through the official bit for now. We can celebrate with him later. I assume we'll see you at the after-party, Bill?"

"Wouldn't miss it," Bill answered with a wink before turning back to face his men. He had been the only person that Falco had told of Fox's planned proposal. Considering that Bill was Fox's oldest friend, Falco thought he had the right to know, and apart from that, Falco had a plan that he would need Bill's help for.

There was no time to think about that now. General Pepper had stood up and made his way to the podium, indicating that he was ready to speak. All at once, everyone in the room had stood and saluted. The general waved his hand and addressed them all. "As you were."

Almost as quickly as they had stood, the soldiers reseated themselves. "I don't see why _we_ had to stand," Falco quipped. Fox nudged him with his elbow, a gesture that meant he should shut his mouth.

"We are here today to honor someone who, though he was never one of us, has assisted us more than we could ever tell. Along with the rest of the Star Fox team, Peppy Hare has helped us to win two wars that we could not have hoped to win by ourselves. His wisdom and guidance have saved many lives, not only in the Cornerian Army, but in all of the Lylat System, and for this, we thank him."

Everyone in the hall applauded politely, but not for long; they all knew the speech was just beginning.

"I remember when I first became General..."

"And there he goes with his life story," Fox muttered as General Pepper launched into an anecdote about how Peppy had offered their services to the Army back when James McCloud had led the team.

"As if we all haven't heard it a dozen times," Falco added.

The two of them were not the only ones in the hall that were showing signs of exasperation at the turn the general's speech had taken. Though the soldiers remained alert for the most part, a few of them, including Bill Grey, had engaged in whispered conversations. Krystal, who was no less annoyed by the situation than the rest of them, was still attempting to pay attention to the speech out of respect for Peppy. Falco glanced up at the high table where Peppy was seated to find the hare with one hand over his eyes. It was clear that he wasn't entirely pleased with the speech either, a fact that made Falco smirk. He got the rest of the team's attention by tapping on the table, then pointed up at Peppy when they looked at him questioningly.

Peppy had started to imitate the old hound's mannerisms behind his back while he was speaking. Several of the colonels seated next to him were paying him no notice, and a couple were even giving him looks of disapproval, but the officers on the other side of the podium had spotted him and were trying their best not to laugh audibly. General Pepper seemed not to notice any of this, however, as he pressed on.

As the speech dragged on, Peppy had gone from imitating the general behind his back, to responding to certain parts of the story silently but melodramatically, to making strange faces at the "funny" parts of the general's speech to elicit real laughter from the audience. Star Fox were trying their hardest not to disrupt the speech with their reactions, but their senior member's irreverence was making it more difficult than it should have been.

"This isn't like Peppy, acting so childishly at a formal occasion," Krystal noted quietly, stifling her laughter as best she could. "What's he playing at?"

"He hates the story as much as the rest of us," Falco whispered. "Usually he wouldn't dare to act this way if General Pepper's speaking, but he's retiring now, he doesn't give a damn."

"Besides," Slippy continued the thought, "it's his party, he can do what he wants."

Fox laughed silently, covering his mouth with his hand, before looking back at the general. "Looks like he's wrapping up. Pay attention to the last bit so we know when to clap."

Indeed, General Pepper's speech was nearing it's close. "In short-" Fox and Falco grinned to each other. "-Peppy Hare has done more for this army than many of the officers, and for that, I would like to present to him the Cornerian Medal of Honor, the highest award that non-military personnel can receive." The general turned to face Peppy, whose face was now a mask of dignity, as he made his way down to the podium. General Pepper had taken a small box from underneath the podium and opened it to show a light-blue and silver medal with the Cornerian Army's logo on it. As Peppy accepted the medal, the general gave him a crisp, respectful, thoroughly military salute. All of the soldiers stood and followed suit, as did the Star Fox team. Peppy saluted back to the general and to the audience, who all sat down.

Star Fox, however, did not sit down, and were still saluting when everyone else had taken their seats. A smile broke out on Peppy's face as he faced them and saluted them specifically. As the Star Fox team was not a military group in any capacity, salutes were not customary, but they felt that Peppy deserved the gesture now, and with more respect behind it than anyone else in the audience could put into it. After Peppy returned their salute, they took their seats and watched the old rabbit as he prepared to speak.

"I've always hated making speeches," Peppy started. "I never know what to say, and I'm certainly no great orator like General Pepper-" He gestured back to the general to much laughter from the audience. "-so I'll try to keep it brief."

"James McCloud, may he rest in peace, once told me that everything we, as a team, did was for Corneria. Naturally, I asked him, 'If that's the case, James, why don't we just join the Cornerian Army, make it official?' He responded, 'The Cornerian Army has regulations, rules they have to follow. We don't.' He basically said to me that we were the group that the army called when they needed to break a few rules. I wasn't sure how I felt about that, and I told him so. He said, 'No, no, you don't understand. We're not just some band of mercenaries that are occasionally on the government's payroll.' I was astounded, because that was sure what it seemed like to me. But he went on, he said, 'The Cornerian Army has rules. We don't have rules, we have standards. We may not be part of the Army, but we're still on the side of the law. We do what we need to combat injustice, even if people hate us for it. We don't do this for own glory. Hell, we don't even _have_ to do this. But we _choose_ to. We've chosen to serve our planet in whatever way we can, by whatever means necessary.'

"That phrase stuck with me. 'Whatever means necessary.' Now, I'm not someone who believes in the phrase 'the ends justify the means,' and it sort of shocked me that James had taken that kind of attitude. But as we flew together, I saw that that wasn't exactly what he meant. Some of the actions that we took were highly unorthodox and sometimes contemptible, and the military probably could never have gotten away with it, but what we did was never unnecessarily cruel. We did what we had to and nothing more.

"After James passed away, that was the principle that I always remembered, and that I tried to pass on to his son Fox." Peppy gestured to the leader of the Star Fox team, who merely smiled. "I couldn't tell you how proud I was when I saw that he had adopted the attitude so readily and so completely. After the Lylat Wars, after Fox single-handedly defeated Andross, General Pepper offered us all a commission with the Cornerian Army, and do you know what Fox said to him? 'Oh no, sir. We prefer doing things our own way.' He could easily have taken a cushy job as an officer in the army, and most people in his position might have done so. But Fox so thoroughly agreed with his father's stance on the team's operations that he turned down the General at his own commendation ceremony, which, I gotta tell ya, took some guts.

"That, I think, is my greatest achievement in my years of starflight. Keeping the mantra of James McCloud alive through his son, keeping the Star Fox team's original purpose clear and uncorrupted... We could easily have become like any other band of mercenaries, taking any job that paid well, but because Fox believed his father's words, the team has remained as it was when James led it, as it should be."

Peppy paused for just a moment and beamed at Fox. It could not be more clear to anyone that Peppy was extremely proud of the young vulpine. He turned to face the soldiers once more and continued.

"And so I urge all of you to take the same stance that we have. You may be restricted by military regulations, and I in no way endorse violating those regulations-" He glanced back at the colonels and General Pepper behind him holding his hands up in the air. "-but I want you to take that advice to heart. Don't be afraid to do what is necessary for what you believe is right. I know how cliché that sounds, but I mean it sincerely. There are some in the military that are in it merely to advance their own careers, to glorify themselves. I urge you strongly not to be one of those people. Those people are afraid to do anything that might jeopardize their future careers. Screw your careers!" Peppy pounded on the podium, startling several people in the audience. "What does a rank mean if you haven't got any conviction to back it up? Better to be a private that stands up for justice than a colonel with no backbone!"

Behind him, several of the colonels looked offended, as if Peppy had suggested that _they_ had no backbone. General Pepper himself nodded approvingly, and a couple colonels nearby nodded sycophantically, merely proving Peppy's point. The lieutenant colonels on the far ends of the table seemed to agree with him more sincerely, looking to the officers in their command as if to say, _Listen to the man, and take what he's saying to heart._

"The general called you all here to honor me, and to honor my achievements. I can't stress enough that my achievements would mean nothing to any of you if I hadn't heard those words. So if you remember nothing else that I say tonight, if you remember nothing that I've ever done, just remember those words... The words of James McCloud. 'Do what you must to do what is right.' "

Peppy returned to his seat next to General Pepper to much applause. The Star Fox team, naturally had stood to applaud their old friend, and they were not the only ones. Many soldiers in the banquet hall as well as the general himself stood and applauded for Peppy. As the applause died down, Bill Grey walked up to the podium and spoke into the microphone. "Well, I know that a couple of the officers were supposed to speak after Peppy, but I don't think we're going to hear better advice for quite a while. What do you say we go home, General?"

The hall went silent. Bill was a fairly high-ranking officer, but not one of the soldiers would ever in a million years have shown such disrespect to all of the brass at once. Most of the colonels looked affronted, feeling that they deserved their chance to speak more than Peppy did, and that Bill should be shot for suggesting that what they had to say wasn't important. They looked to General Pepper for support, but the hound stood and said as loudly as he could, "I couldn't agree more, Captain Grey. I think some of my colonels might do well to heed Peppy's advice, and learn some humility while they're at it. Dismissed!"

Nearly everyone stood up at once and headed for the door, but some stayed behind. The colonels at the high table looked thunderstruck, watching with awe as the general joined the mass of people heading for the exit. The Star Fox team stood but did not make to leave, instead choosing to wait for Peppy, who had walked straight for them.

"Brilliant speech, Peppy," Krystal said, embracing the old hare.

Peppy returned her embrace and grinned. "I meant it sincerely." He turned to look at Fox. "You know that better than anyone."

Fox smiled, but said nothing. After a few seconds of silence, Falco interjected, "Hey, and what about during the general's speech? That was somethin' else, Pep."

"Oh good, I was hoping you'd enjoy that," Peppy chuckled, giving them a mischievous wink. "I mean, we've all heard the general's 'back when I first became general' speech who knows how many times, I thought we could use a little levity to make it more interesting."

Falco checked his watch. It wasn't even 6:30. The party was meant to start a little later in the evening under the assumption that the official ceremony would take a lot longer than it did. "Well, we got outta here pretty quick," he noted. "I didn't think we'd be done here for another couple hours. What d'ya say we get started with the real celebration in an hour and a half?"

Everyone nodded their assent. "Awright then. Alla ya, my place, 8 o'clock. 'Cept you, Slip, you're uninvited."

"Whaaaaat?" Slippy responded in a tone of mock disbelief. Falco punched him playfully on the arm. The two of them had a history of giving each other a lot of grief, but they both knew that there was never any malice behind it.

"Seriously though, 8 o'clock. Don't be late." The team started to split up, but Falco grabbed Fox's arm before he got out of reach. "Fox, I need to talk to you for a sec about the party." Krystal looked questioningly at them, but Fox waved at her to go ahead, a signal that he would be along in a couple of minutes.

Falco looked around, trying to find Bill. He spotted the captain near the exit, chatting with a couple soldiers. "HEY! BILL! OVER HERE FOR A SEC!" The bulldog left his soldiers with a quick "see you later" and started jogging over to where Fox and Falco were.

As Bill got nearer, Falco started to speak in hushed tones. "Hope you don't mind, Foxie, but I told Bill what you're planning for tonight."

Fox was shocked. "Dude, I told you not-"

"I know, I know, but I figured he could help us. Just hear me out, awright? Trust me."

Fox glowered, but said nothing more. Bill had finally reached them. "What's up?"

"Alright, the three of us are the only ones at this party that know what's going down. Fox, I don't know how, but you've so far managed to keep your plan a secret from somebody who can read minds. That'll probably get a lot harder as you get closer to the actual proposal, y'know, you'll start to get nervous, might let a thought slip through that she'll hear."

Fox was already starting to look a bit nervous. "Yeah, you've got a point there."

"Bill, that's where you and I come in. It's our job to run interference. Keep Krystal distracted, whether that's by talking to her or just thinking something unrelated very loudly. Keeping a secret from a telepath is one hell of a job, but we gotta do it, if only for a couple of hours."

Bill nodded. Falco turned to Fox and put both hands on his shoulders. "You've done a great job of keeping it from her so far, Foxie, don't blow it now. If she asks what I needed to talk to you about, just tell her I needed you to pick up another six-pack of beer. Don't forget to actually pick up the six-pack, either, or she'll get suspicious."

Fox laughed nervously. "Thanks, Falco. You too, Bill."

"Anything to help out, McCloud," Bill answered, grinning.

"Oh, Bill, grab some cookies or somethin' before you get to my place," Falco said suddenly. "We'll be good on drinks, and I got plenty of chips and salsa, but we need somethin' sweet."

"Gotcha," Bill responded, walking away. Falco turned to face Fox once more.

"You alright?"

"Just getting a little nervous now."

"Well, cut it out. You've come this far. Bill and I will help you out once you get to the party, just keep your thoughts in check until you get to my place, huh?"

Fox nodded. "Falco... thanks."

"Don't mention it. Seriously." Falco winked. "I'll see ya tonight."

* * *

><p><em>I really wasn't looking forward to doing the actual ceremony, but I tried to spruce up an otherwise boring event for you guys. Hopefully I succeeded.<br>_

_Also, regarding the band names from the beginning: "The Katina Outcasts," for those of you who may not have caught the joke, was a bit of a play on the Katina Outpost level from Star Fox: Assault. "Fortuna," of course, is a shout-out to all bands whose names are locations, such as Boston, Kansas, Chicago, etc._

_Next up is the actual party! That should be considerably more fun to write and to read._

_Reviews are cool. People who review are awesome. If you took the time to read this, please do us both a favor and be awesome.  
>You can also read this fan fiction on NintendoLand, which I will update a day or two ahead of this.<br>_


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